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JHS · 03-09-2020, 05:43 AM

The town of Kladno, Czech Republic lies some 25 kilometers northwest of the capital city of Prague. The night is quiet, with the cityfolk asleep snugly in their beds, warm and happy from their trips to the famous winter markets in the town squares of the bohemian countryside. Out among the darkness, though, shines one light, out on the back pond of a farmstead on the very fringes of Kladno. It hangs from strings tied amongst trees over an old, rusted out hockey goal with holes in the nets and dents in the posts. And it is here, like it has been every evening of every winter of his life, that Konrad Danke hones his craft.

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Life has not been easy for Danke. He has, for the most part, spent it working the land with his father, earning the calloused hands and mental fortitude of a man who relies on himself for his own prosperity. Though he, when younger, loved the leather twined books and exciting challenges of the classroom, he long ago gave up dreams of a scholarly life. Until just two short years ago, even his hockey playing had to be done under the cover of darkness, once his father had gone to bed and Konrad could sneak to the back pond. His life had revolved around the farm. Anything else had to be secondary.

It wasn't until 16, when he found the opportunity to sneak off the farm and attend a tryout for one of Kladno's youth academies, did he ever have the chance to play organized puck. But boy, when he did, the talent was immediately apparent. Showing the hardnosed, all-around effort adapted from his farm-borne work ethic, Danke was a diamond in the rough, coaches seeing in him all the intangibles that make a great two way center. And his years away from the classroom, fortunately, had not lessened any his love of learning, and he showed a hunger for the more thought-intensive aspects of the game thought to be inherent within all legendary hockey players. Not many people understand the game like Konrad Danke, and even less love it like he does. This is why, just two years after playing in his first organized game, he was thought to be developed enough to where he was picked up by the SMJHL's Halifax Raiders, now the Maine Timber, just in time for the playoffs. And though they lost the series, Danke did pitch in two goals, not bad work for a kid suddenly thrust onto the most competitive league for his age group.

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[Image: 1297809958329_ORIGINAL.jpg?quality=80&si...6789143724]

For the first time, the kid from Kladno had more than one light shining down on him as he played the sport he loved. In fact, the lights never seemed to cease. Now, back at the farmstead, preparing for the upcoming SMJHL draft, Konrad Danke has come to realize that one light was just never enough. He's tasted what its felt like to thrive in high pressure situations, with the game on his stick and the world on his shoulders. People are saying that he may be the most dependable two way center in the draft: what he lacks for pedigree he makes up for in pure game sense, effort, and devotion to his team. If there were a bet on the player most likely to be a workhorse, dependable and steady, for a team in this draft, it would almost certainly be Konrad Danke who was the favorite. Who knows where he'll go? And honestly, Danke doesn't care, as long as he gets to keep playing hockey. And while he'll never forget where he came from, there's no way in hell he'll be satisfied until he's playing in the top league in the world: the SHL. Konrad Danke is going to keep working the way he always has, with a sense of duty and sacrifice to do what he loves. And god forbid anyone who tries to get in his way.